In light of the upcoming TIE PHANTOM and it's apparent vulnerability to stress we take a look at Hobbie and his ability to deal out stress every turn!
Let's Discuss Hobbie Klivian: http://youtu.be/K15p3vZ2fQw
Feel free to look at my channel and subscribe. I have a lot more video's in the queue for the next couple of weeks and there's more to watch!
Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/mvanrooijenjr
Enjoy!
I love this 4X list:
Hobbie Klivian
++R3-A2
Biggs Darklighter
Red Squadron Pilot
Tarn Mison
++R7 Astromech
As you said in your video, Hobbie really annoys your opponent, but Biggs keeps him on the table a few turns longer than the enemy would like. Then, you almost inevitably end up with Tarn and Red left, and they don't want to shoot Tarn because of his ability, making him a really annoying end-gamer. Not to mention, this list gives you 12-16 attack dice across 4 ships, and 20 total HP.
YOU REBEL SCUM!
... and I'm outta here
Nice job with those videos! I hope you do many more in the future
I love this 4X list:
Hobbie Klivian
++R3-A2
Biggs Darklighter
Red Squadron Pilot
Tarn Mison
++R7 Astromech
As you said in your video, Hobbie really annoys your opponent, but Biggs keeps him on the table a few turns longer than the enemy would like. Then, you almost inevitably end up with Tarn and Red left, and they don't want to shoot Tarn because of his ability, making him a really annoying end-gamer. Not to mention, this list gives you 12-16 attack dice across 4 ships, and 20 total HP.
Red instead of Airen Cracken? Xs and Zeds have almost identical dial.
What if we, saaayyyy, replace Red with:
Airen Cracken - Swarm Tactics, or hell, Squad Leader - 21
Hobbie Klivian - R3-A2 - 27
Biggs Darklighter - R7 Astro - 27
Tarn Mison - R7 Astro - 25
Airen attacks with one less dice, but he can give one X a TL at an ideal time to give TL+F. He can either give that to two ships or give it to one ship and let one attack at PS8. Also, again at a great time in the sequence of events, he can give a defensive TL to Biggs to reroll enemy dice via R7. Everyone is in their set place on the board so you will know who is going to attack Biggs with the most dice or benefits.
I love this 4X list:
Hobbie Klivian
++R3-A2
Biggs Darklighter
Red Squadron Pilot
Tarn Mison
++R7 Astromech
As you said in your video, Hobbie really annoys your opponent, but Biggs keeps him on the table a few turns longer than the enemy would like. Then, you almost inevitably end up with Tarn and Red left, and they don't want to shoot Tarn because of his ability, making him a really annoying end-gamer. Not to mention, this list gives you 12-16 attack dice across 4 ships, and 20 total HP.
That's a pretty killer list, I love it. Tarn is pretty darn hard to kill with R7, Biggs and Hobbie next to him.
Nice job with those videos! I hope you do many more in the future
I have many more planned!
I like "Hobbie" a lot. There are many different combinations of droids and teammates that you can put on him to create some synergy.
R7-T1 : While this is a droid that is good on a variety of different pilots already it allows "Hobbie" to move into or out of position and make use of his target lock without him requiring PtL or even giving him an Engine Upgrade. X-Wings can have a tough time getting out of jousting situations anyway so this can help with board control and damage control.
R7 Astromech : Also extremely recommended. Sometimes, having Target Locks are simply non-advantageous when you happen to roll well with attack dice. This allows you to make use of his TL actions on either the offensive -or- defensive front, allowing them to work more like specialized Focus.
R4-D6 : Gain stress to avoid extra points of damage? This might be the pilot you want to place this guy on. An interesting combination, if highly situational and controversial.
R3-A1 : Almost the go to astromech for him, as you pointed out in your video. Creating stress tokens with his attacks and using Target Locks to rid the stress created with the droid attacks is simply the natural course of action with this droid. The only problem with it is it can make "Hobbie" slightly more predictably, but the results can be potent when forced onto ships with bad dials, ships with PtL or Opportunist, or that are action dependant. In my opinion? Almost an auto-include.
R5-K6 : An interesting and potent choice, but luck dependant. Getting back Target Locks after spending them will make his action economy that much more tight, and can allow you to make use of white moves when stressed, adding Focus tokens or using Koiogran turns when you regain a Target Lock. I actually highly recommend this droid if you want to give him an Engine Upgrade. Not a strategy for the feint of heart or those who don't want to "spend too many points" on one ship.
R2-D6 : I'll recommend only three options for him for the sake of simplicity and space; Push the Limit, Opportunist, and Veteran Instincts. PtL is already seen as useful, so if you want to use a Focus + Target Lock combination with him, you can shed said stress from PtL and get both actions. VERY worthwhile with Engine Upgrade, but tricky when dealing with higher PS opponents. Opportunist takes advantage of "Hobbie's" middle of the road pilot skill when other higher PS allies fly with him, allowing him to make use of an extra die while not gaining any stress after spending his TL (provided he's attacking the ship he TL'd in the first place. Wes Janson works beautifully in this set-up!). Veteran Instincts gives him valuable PS that help him gain Target Locks in earlier rounds of the game to set up with his ability, but otherwise offers few other benefits. Still, a cheap if somewhat "boring" option.
Other droids: while repair droids offer a fighter that lasts longer they simply don't quite measure up on "Hobbie's" ability in terms of synergy, and also tend to cost an extra point or two that may be spent elsewhere. R2 and R5 Astromechs are somewhat more situationally useful on him, but since he's stress shedder anyway it can be seen as a clumsy choice to put an R2 unit on him. If you really have the points to spend here I'll maybe say R2-D2 or R5-D4. Another possibility is R2-F2, who can be helpful if you can somehow gain more actions to make the droid activate while making use of other actions.
Other pilots: "Hobbie" works best when able to use his ability alongside pilots who can generate additional actions for him, or who can take advantage of the stress he can create. In this sense, Airen Cracken, Lando Calrissian, Garven Dreis and "Dutch" Vander are notable additions to him. Airen and Garven are extremely easy to keep in formation with, while "Dutch" is great for creating extra Target Locks while able to provide "Hobbie" with the action he really needs to make the most of his abilities. Otherwise, you can use "Hobbie" to act on his own if he has a droid that makes him more independant from the rest of the flight group, such as R3-A1 or R5-K6.
Very informative post! Thank you.
I do like Hobbie's potential and I've run him a few times. That PS 5 hurts him though. He has a hard time drawing a bead on the ship he really needs to.
...or when he does, your opponent one-shots him with Rexlar Brath at range 3 with an HLC. But that's another story...
What if we, saaayyyy, replace Red with:
Airen Cracken - Swarm Tactics, or hell, Squad Leader - 21
Hobbie Klivian - R3-A2 - 27
Biggs Darklighter - R7 Astro - 27
Tarn Mison - R7 Astro - 25
In that case, I'd give Biggs R2-F2 and probably Veteran Instincts to Cracken. Then, Cracken passes a focus to Extra Agility Biggs, then when Biggs dies, he can pass a Focus to Hobbie, so he always hits.
What if we, saaayyyy, replace Red with:
Airen Cracken - Swarm Tactics, or hell, Squad Leader - 21
Hobbie Klivian - R3-A2 - 27
Biggs Darklighter - R7 Astro - 27
Tarn Mison - R7 Astro - 25
In that case, I'd give Biggs R2-F2 and probably Veteran Instincts to Cracken. Then, Cracken passes a focus to Extra Agility Biggs, then when Biggs dies, he can pass a Focus to Hobbie, so he always hits.
Oh that's perfect. Those 4 points were kinda open, but that is a sweet setup. I really love that they all have useful Astromechs without repeats. Even better, I can field it right now with my one R7! (b'-')b
Edit: I was just thinking about it again and **** is that good!
Edited by SkargothWell i don't really think that his PS5 is a problem. In fact before phantoms came out nobody made a fuss about PS a lot, and even now if you outnumber the Phantoms enough you can still win, although it's more difficult. With R2-A3 he is probably also on the very dangerous side for an enemy phantom...
It's even less of a problem if you pair him with Biggs ot other high priority targets. If they don't focus him, he can really put stress token after token on enemies while never getting stressed himself. That's pretty powerful, especially in duel situations.
Well i don't really think that his PS5 is a problem. In fact before phantoms came out nobody made a fuss about PS a lot, and even now if you outnumber the Phantoms enough you can still win, although it's more difficult. With R2-A3 he is probably also on the very dangerous side for an enemy phantom...
It's even less of a problem if you pair him with Biggs ot other high priority targets. If they don't focus him, he can really put stress token after token on enemies while never getting stressed himself. That's pretty powerful, especially in duel situations.
I guess you and I must just have different experiences with PS. Almost every imperial player in my area runs Soontir Feel and/or Carnor Jax frequently. PtL interceptors with high PS are very difficult to draw a bead on consistently. And acquiring a TL AND getting a bead on them is even harder.
I'm often able to put stress on ships but not necessarily the ship I want.
I'm considering using Hobbie with Opportunist in an escalation list.
I'm considering using Hobbie with Opportunist in an escalation list.
With R2-D6 I presume?
I'm considering using Hobbie with Opportunist in an escalation list.
With R2-D6 I presume?
Of course.
I'm considering using Hobbie with Opportunist in an escalation list.
With R2-D6 I presume?
Of course.
That's evil! I love it 
Now, what are you going to pair it with?
When paired with Dutch, I like to give Hobbie Expert Handling sometimes instead of the classic R3-A1.
You move at PS5, do a barrel roll and get stressed. Dutch move and give him a TL to remove his stress and have a modifier for his attack.
That's a pretty interesting combo, getting that mobility with expert handling on Hobbie.